300 trucks stranded at Assam-Bengal border; Andhra lorry owners seek Centre’s intervention

The Andhra Pradesh Lorry Owners’ Association (APLOA) has urged the Union Finance Ministry and the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) to intervene in the reported detention of more than 300 trucks at the Assam-West Bengal border, alleging that consignments carrying raw petroleum coke were being prevented from proceeding despite GST compliance and payment of Integrated GST (IGST).

“These trucks have remained stranded for several days now, disrupting goods movement to Andhra Pradesh and other States,” Y.V. Eswara Rao, general secretary of the association, told The Hindu. He said nearly 50% of the trucks were carrying consignments meant for Visakhapatnam, and others were bound for Haldia and Durgapur in West Bengal, Barauni in Bihar and Paradip in Odisha. Mr. Eswara Rao said the detention had caused financial losses to transport operators and industrial establishments, besides hardship to drivers.

Individual truck owners have also been hit. P. Venkata Siva Nagaraju, a lorry owner from Vijayawada, said three of his new trucks had been detained at an outpost on the West Bengal border for over a month. “So far, I have incurred a financial loss of over ₹2 lakh on each vehicle,” he said. The three trucks were carrying crude oil from Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) refineries at Bongaigaon, Guwahati and Digboi in Assam, he said. The drivers remained stranded, away from their families, and were under severe mental and emotional stress, he added.

Sharing details of 16 trucks carrying raw petroleum coke for Rain CII Carbon (Vizag) Ltd. in Visakhapatnam, based on a vehicle list provided by IOC’s Marketing division, Eastern Region, Mr. Eswara Rao asked the authorities to verify the status of these vehicles and facilitate their release if they were being detained without lawful grounds.

Citing an e-way bill for a consignment transported in truck AP39VW-1447, he pointed to the declared taxable value of ₹17.28 lakh and IGST of ₹3.11 lakh at 18%. “The consignment was invoiced by IOC, Assam, to Rain CII Carbon (Vizag) Ltd., with Shiva Transport Agency listed as the transporter,” he said.

Valid tax documents did not exempt consignments from lawful inspection, he said, but prolonged detention without valid legal grounds, or without communicating the reasons and the statutory provisions applied, should not be permitted.

He estimated the demurrage losses to the transport industry and other stakeholders at about ₹1 crore and warned that prolonged delays could disrupt industrial production and increase costs for consignors and consignees.

Mr. Eswara Rao said the association had written to the Union Finance Ministry and other authorities concerned seeking an immediate review of the detention of more than 300 trucks, verification of the 16 vehicles carrying consignments to Andhra Pradesh, and disclosure of the statutory grounds and written orders supporting any detention. He also called for coordination among GST authorities in the States concerned and uniform guidelines to ensure that vehicles carrying valid documents could proceed without obstruction.